COOL KAMADOS

By CINDA CHAVICH

Special to the Globe and Mail

For serious barbecue cooks, The Big Green Egg (BGE) is a cult classic, perfect for both slow smoking and high temperature charcoal grilling.

Modeled after traditional Japanese kamado cookers, the Roughrider green “Egg” has been around since the ‘70s, and sold in Canada for a decade. It’s thick ceramic exterior, and ability to seal in both heat and moisture, has made the BGE the Cadillac charcoal cooker but its high price tag – about $1,500 for the standard size model with stand – put it out of reach for the average outdoor chef.

That is, until now. There’s been a flurry of BGE knock-offs hitting the market – some with even more stratospheric price tags, but others that are a little more down to earth.

At about $800, the double-walled steel version of the BGE, looks like a khaki-coloured beer keg.

Like many chefs and serious foodies in Calgary, Rogalski and I are both fans of barbecue cooking – that is, slow smoking of pork butt, ribs, chicken and other southern delights – and own smokers that accomplish the task. At his upscale Rouge restaurant, Rogalski has a little smoker to hit the elk medallions or char-grilled Alberta lamb chops with that sweet barbecue aroma, and I have an old R2D2-style bullet smoker at the cabin that makes perfect tender ribs, pulled pork and smoked trout.

But these heavy-duty, egg-shaped ovens promise what the average smoker can’t - both very low, slow cooking for tender pork butt and brisket, and high, high heat akin to a wood-fired oven for pizza and steak.

We took our cookers through the paces, both smoking a five-pound pork butt (shoulder), then opening the vents wide to let the charcoal take the ovens up to extreme heat.

Both have thermometers built into the lid – the Keg goes up to 800ºF but my Vision Kamado gauge stops around 550ºF, and we pushed both beyond the dial.

It was sometimes tricky to keep our barbecues at a steady 225-250ºF, but the smoky pork from both was tender, juicy and falling apart to the “pulled” stage after about eight hours. The bonus for both units was the moist cooking and the slow burning of the fuel. We both started with about 4 L of quality hardwood charcoal which lasted throughout the entire smoking process.

Our thin crust pizzas cooked perfectly on their ceramic pizza stones, crisp and lightly charred like a good pizzeria but we needed more charcoal – about 8L to maintain high heat. When we fired up the Keg for pizza, it took an hour to get to the upper ranges. My Vision Kamado soared up to high heat in 30 minutes, but while cooking we heard a loud pop. I’d read that pizza stones can break in the kamado but didn’t expect the hairline crack I found in the exterior of the unit after it cooled. While the dealer insured me the Vision Kamodo would cook at 150ºF to 800ºF – and agreed to replace the cracked unit – there’s only a one-year warranty, so hopefully this won’t happen again (actually, it did, and so hoping to test the new improved model they’ve designed for 2012).

The double walled insulted steel Keg is better designed for high temperature cooking. The BGE has this kind of cooking built right into its design, too, and is guaranteed for life.

Charcoal cooking is more hands-on than gas grilling, but if you’re serious about outdoor cooking, these kamado-style units are cool tools. Just make sure you check out the warranties and service before you buy.

Price:

Big Steel Keg $799

Vision Kamado $846 ($749 when available at Costco)

Ease of Use and Performance

The Keg has a heat-proof stove gasket to seal the top and base. The Kamado has a replaceable thick felt ring and the interior edge burned and blackened at high temperature.

The Keg is difficult to re-light as all of the grills need to come off to add coals, while the Kamado has a hinged grill that makes replenishing coals and adding wood chips for smoking much easier. On the other hand, the Keg has heavy cast iron grills - better for searing steak.

Both units are easy to use, and perfectly cooked pork butt and pizza, but the steel Keg was better able to withstand ultra-high temperatures.

Safety

Cooking with charcoal requires some safety precautions. Light charcoal with an electric starter or use a chimney charcoal starter, like we did, and pour the preheated coals carefully into the firebox.

Both of these units are well-sealed and can flare when the lid is opened. So always crack the lid slightly, and open slowly, or open the vents to stabilize oxygen levels before opening. Ceramic cookers don’t get as hot as metal units on the exterior, but use caution when cooking at high temperatures.

Design

The BGE and other ceramic kamado grills are definitely stylish – my black Vision Kamado with its sleek stainless steel base and bamboo side tables, adds a nice Asian focal point to the back garden. But it’s fragile and extremely heavy to move around (think, two or three men to lift it).

The Keg, on the other hand is light enough to lift onto a trailer hitch (it comes with an optional package so you can haul it out to tailgate parties), but it looks as clunky as it sounds with a khaki beer-keg profile, large black plastic wheels and side tables. It’s definitely a style statement for those who want the party central, macho look (hint: the original name was the Bubba Keg). Both are similar in size when it comes to cooking surface, but the Kamado weighs in at over 200 pounds, compared with 123 for the Keg.

Intangibles

This kind of cooking is tricky and variable – wind, rain, air temperature, even fuel, can affect cooking times and results. Paul used BGE charcoal which tends to be harder to light but burns slower than the Canadian Maple Leaf lump charcoal I used which burns very hot.

They say both are all-season barbecues but it’s hard to say how they will stand up over time. Metal barbecues like the Big Steel Keg are prone to rusting, and the ceramic Vision Kamado can crack. Neither is guaranteed for life, like the original Big Green Egg.

(EDITOR’S NOTE: Since this story was first published the Vision Kamado has been redesigned and now has a lifetime warranty on all ceramic parts).

©Cinda Chavich 2011

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